12:24Of the 676 projects sanctioned, only 356 remain completed: GowdaMismanagement and apathy has hurt Indian railways over the last 10 years: GowdaThere are 4 projects that are over 30 years old but have still not been completed : GowdaBuilding new lines is a loss making proposition: Gowda

It is investment in doubling and tripling lines that yields money for railways: Gowda

Loss per passenger per km up form 10 paise earlier to 23 paise today: GowdaRs 5 lakh cr required over the next 10 years to meet cost of ongoing projects alone: Gowda

Indian Railways will continue to fulfill social responsibilities, but difficult beyond a point without comprising on efficiency: Railway Minister

12:19Railways carries 23 million passengers a day, 1 bn tonnes of freight a year: GowdaGowda: Trains that run in India are capable to move the entire population of Australia.Indian Railways hauls 1 billion tonnes of freight anually, but only 33% of all freight carried on all modes: Railway Minister

12:18Railways carries 23 million passengers a day, 1 bn tonnes of freight a year: GowdaGowda: Trains that run in India are capable to move the entire population of Australia.Indian Railways hauls 1 billion tonnes of freight anually, but only 33% of all freight carried on all modes: Railway Minister

12:14Sadanand Gowda says honesty first chapter in the book of wisdomTarget to become the largest freight carrier in the world: GowdaRailway Minister says he is flooded with requests for new trains, railway lines

12:13At 1218 hour the 30-share BSE Sensex is down 46 points at 26,054.34. The NSE Nifty is down 22 points at 7,764.70.

12:08Railway Minister Sadanand Gowda made waves even before he presented his maiden budget with a 14 percent hike in passenger fares across the country.

11:26Railway Minister tweets: Hope we are able to meet public expectationsWe will make railway people friendly, says Rail Minister Sadananda GowdaInterestingly, most of these stocks touched 52-week highs before falling prey to profit booking. However, Hind Rectifier and Kalindee Rail are still on buyers' radar.Stocks like Titagarh Wagons , Kernex Micro and Texmaco are down around 5 per cent intraday on Tuesday.

11:12Expect Rail Budget to upgrade existing infrastructureCapital infusion can help railway sector improve servicesKalindee Rail: Hope government will push freight, high speed corridors in the BudgetKPMG: Need large foreign investments to bring in latest technology

10:34 The first Rail Budget of the new government is likely to have announcements related to high-speed trains, including potential sources of funding for the much-speculated bullet train, project.The Budget is likely to have clear schedules and steps for increasing the speed of passenger trains, one of the promises made by both railways minister Sadananda Gowda and Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

10:10For Railway Minister D V Sadanand Gowda, it will be a tightrope walk between populism and tough reform measures as it presents the Modi government's first Railway Budget at a time when the cash-strapped transporter is gasping for survival.

10:05Markets erase early gains; IT stocks plunge:Markets have erased its momentary gains and are trading marginally in red as investors turn cautious and book profits. At 9.45 AM, the Sensex is trading at 26,065 levels down by 35 points and Nifty is quoting at 7,772 levels down by 15 points.Meanwhile, foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) bought shares worth a net Rs 198.57 crore on Monday, 7 July 2014, as per provisional data from the stock exchanges.

09:57 The first Mumbai-Ahmedabad high-speed train proposal may get a push in the new government's maiden rail budget, considering Prime Minister Narendra Modi's promise of a diamond quadrilateral of bullet trains to connect the four major cities of Mumbai, Delhi, Kolkata and Chennai.A high-speed train will run at a maximum speed of 320km/h and cover 534km between the two cities in two hours.

09:45Nifty opens above 7,800 ahead of Rail Budget:The markets have opened on a positive note ahead of the Railway Budget announcement later in the day.Investors expect the government to unveil reform-oriented measures and take steps to modernise the Railways.At 9.15 AM, the Sensex is quoting 52 points higher at 26,153 levels and Nifty is trading 16 points higher at 7,803 levels.Tata Power, Sun Pharma, HDFC, Cipla and ITC are some of the top gainers among the Sensex scrips. However, Dr Reddys, Tata Motors, Wipro and TCS are trading weak.

09:37Assocham for Rs 40,000 cr budgetary support to Railways:The industry chamber said the financial assistance will enable transformation of the Indian Railways, which at present is under tremendous financial constraint, into the most efficient and affordable carrier in the world. It said the support would evoke interest of global investors to invest in upgradation of the Indian Railways network.

09:34Gowda may tap external funding for railway projects.He is likely to propose to convert railways into a number of listed corporations.Travel cos bat for FDI in Railways.

09:28Shares of railway related companies are in focus and trading higher by up to 4% in early morning deals on the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) ahead of Railway Budget today.Texmaco Rail & Engineering, Titagarh Wagons, Kalindee Rail Nirman (Engineers), Kernex Microsystems (India) and Stone India are up 1-4%, trading at their respective 52-week high on BSE.Analysts expect in the Railway Budget, the government will focus on modernisation and devise new strategies to attract private investment in the Railways.

09:22Mumbai Metro to offer discounted fares from today:Mumbaikars commuting on the 11.4-kilometre (km)
Versova-Andheri-Ghatkopar corridor of the Mumbai Metro will not have to
pay fares of Rs 10, Rs 20, Rs 30 and Rs 40 fixed by Reliance
Infrastructure arm Mumbai Metro One Pvt Ltd from Tuesday.They will pay according to the new discounted fares of Rs 10 (3 km), Rs 15 (8 km) and Rs 20 (20 km).Further,
a commuter would have to pay a mere Rs 20 to travel between Versova and
Ghatkopar by using a token and Rs 15 if he uses a smart card.

09:21Mumbai Metro to offer discounted fares from today:The markets are likely to open in the positive terrain as investors are expecting fundamental reforms and technical up gradation of the railways in the Railway Budget.Railway stocks including Texmaco Rail & Engineering, Titagarh Wagons, BEML, Kalindee Rail Nirman (Engineers), Kernex Microsystems (India) and Stone India are likely to remain in focus.